In a nation almost frustratingly humble, it may be relatively shocking for outsiders to discover how prideful Canadians truly are. Why wouldn't we be proud? We have free health care, the best hockey players in the world, and the biggest pop stars in music. Those are all pretty popular examples of our cultural successes, but a new study is giving the North even more reason to hold our heads high.
According to the Legatum Institute, Canada is the 5th most prosperous country in the entire world. Just how excellent is that ranking? Well, it sits above countries like the UK, Germany, France, and yes, even the United States of America. The institute has been working on the report for more than a decade, and releases the study on a yearly basis. For the last few editions, Norway has ranked numero uno, but was usurped this time around, by the Kiwis of New Zealand.
In order to determine their ranking, Legatum looks at nine different categories. To safely declare the "most prosperous country", the organization looks at education, personal freedom, government, economic quality, capitol, health and safety, and business and natural environment. The highest Canada finished out of the aforementioned sections, is second in "personal freedom", and third in "business environment". Not too shabby, if we do say so ourselves.
While Canada ultimately lost out to New Zealand, it still finished better than 135 countries on the globe. You can read the entirety of the report here. In the meantime, let's celebrate and internally sing our national anthem.
